


Better Half

by egosoffire



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Flirting, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Of the physical and emotional kind, Scars
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-27
Updated: 2018-01-27
Packaged: 2019-03-09 23:15:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 706
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13491870
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/egosoffire/pseuds/egosoffire
Summary: Loki notices Tony's scars.





	Better Half

“They don’t recognize the scars, do they?”

Tony whipped around to find Loki standing behind him, arms crossed over his chest. Tony had been standing in the mirror, shirt off, looking at a torso and back criss crossed with jagged lines, scars and old burns. He had been broken down, considerably, by his life as an Avenger. 

Behind the suit was a man, a fragile man. His physical scars were just a mirror of how battered he was, how tired. After the fight with Thanos, he no longer had the ability to keep going. He was...close to the edge.

“What are you doing here?” he asked Loki, grabbing hold of his shirt and flinging it back on. 

“It’s been ten years for you, right?” Loki asked, eyes narrowing with concern. “Ten years since you took up the suit and started fighting for ‘truth and justice’ or whatever…”

“Yeah, more or less.”

“Ten years is a long time for your people.”

Tony cracked a small smile at that. Some people made faces at the way Loki said those kind of things - those disparaging remarks about humans, the species he was unfortunate enough to now cohabitate with. He liked them, however. 

“It is,” he said with a nod. “ _ My people  _ don’t have a whole lot of time.”

“Are you tired, Anthony?”

The words came gently. It’s surprising to Tony, just how gentle Loki can be. He seems to really care. “I’m tired,” he admitted, finding it hard to lie when Loki looked so sincere. “After Thanos…”

Loki’s face paled a bit at the memories that no doubt assaulted him too. Tony knew they had all been to hell and back. He couldn’t even fathom some of what Loki had endured; he had seen horror on a cosmic scale. 

“I understand that clearly.” Loki paused a moment and then looked at Tony hard. “May I ask a question?”

“Sure, go for it.”

“Why don’t you retire?” Loki asked. 

“Retire?” Tony nearly laughed. “I don’t think this is the kind of job you retire from.”

“You’re physically and mentally exhausted,” Loki pointed out matter-of-factly. “Your age will eventually become an issue as well.”

“The world needs saving, Loki.”

“Isn’t that your intent in training the spider boy?” 

Tony looked up at that. It was, deep down, the reason that he was working so hard with Peter. They weren’t all super soldiers like the good old Captain America. The Avengers had been going strong, but they wouldn’t always. There were new ones popping up every single day. Peter was just the first of many.

Tony had been keeping up. There was Peter. Then, there was an Inhuman girl in New Jersey that SHIELD had their eyes on. There was even a kid out in Chicago that some people thought could be the next Iron Man -- go figure. There were always going to be heroes. 

“Do you think it’s possible?” he asked Loki, after a pause and a thought.

“Of course it’s possible,” Loki said firmly. “Your people have left a mark on society Anthony. After Thanos, the world understands that it needs heroes.”    
  


“You have a point…”

The world did need heroes, but heroes couldn’t go on forever. He was getting older and he needed something akin to a real life, at least for a little while.

“I know that,” Loki said matter-of-factly, a grin crossing his face. “I’m smarter than most people give me credit for, Anthony.”

Tony chuckled and shook his head. “I’m going to consider what you said,” he admitted. “Hey -- what about you?”

“What about me?”

“Well, your body isn’t going to breakdown like mine, and you’ve got a lot of life left in you. Are you going to go retire too, or keep doing this? Or...something else entirely?”

Loki smiled, a stunningly beautiful smile.

“I don’t know,” he laughed out. “I could mentor those beautiful young heroes out there. Or...I could go back to villainy, although that’s hardly appealing anymore. Maybe I’ll find myself a mate. Are you available?” 

Tony choked.

“What?” he asked.

The grin reached Loki’s eyes. 

“You heard what I said. You know where to find me if you’re interested. Retirement might be boring. You might need a better half.”


End file.
